LEWISTON – Global Spectrum, professional managers of ice rinks, stadiums, arenas and convention centers around the country, will take over management of the Lewiston Colisee.
City Administrator Jim Bennett said the city will announce a three-year deal with the company at an 11 a.m. news conference Tuesday.
Global Spectrum is a subsidiary of the media conglomerate Comcast, and Bennett hopes that will help bring in bigger acts.
“We’ve said in the past that we need 24 to 36 events per year to make this work,” Bennett said. “That’s been a hard thing to do. We have a hard time finding those events because we really don’t have the clout. But these guys do, and that’s what we’re counting on.”
The company will answer directly to the Colisee Board of Directors, and current Colisee employees will become Global Spectrum employees, Bennett said.
The city officially assumed ownership of the former Central Maine Civic Center in 2004, agreeing to take on $4.7 million in debt and management of the center. That includes day-to-day operations and $2 million in repairs.
The city wrapped up renovations, including a new entrance, ticket office, concession stand and special events room, in February.
The city is also looking to sell the naming rights to the Colisee. Front Row Marketing, another Comcast subsidiary, is handling that process for the city. Applications for the naming rights are due by May 16. The city wants a company to commit to the Colisee for at least 10 years, for a minimum of $75,000 each year.
How the Colisee stacks up, compared to some other properties managed by Global Spectrum
• Lewiston Colisee: 3,600 seats. Up to 4,500 seats for concerts and non-ice shows and 17,000 square feet of display space for exhibitions. Major tenant: Lewiston Maineiacs, a Quebec Major Junior Hockey League team.
• Cranston Veterans Memorial Ice Rink, Cranston R.I.; 1,200 seats. Major tenants: Rhode Island Panthers Women’s hockey team, high school and youth hockey programs.
• IKON Center, Cheyenne, Wyo: 2,500 seats. Major tenants: University of Wyoming hockey and Cheyenne Capitals hockey teams.
• ComCast Ice Rink, Everett, Wash.: 8,200 seats, with 57,000 square feet of display space for exhibitions. Major tenant: Everett Silvertips, Western Hockey League team.
• Mullins Ice Rink, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Mass.: 350-seat ice rink, part of the larger 10,000-seat Mullins Arena. Major tenants: University of Massachusetts Minutemen hockey team.
• Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia: 43,500-seat stadium. Major tenant: Major League Baseball’s Philadelphia Phillies.
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